RC v FP

MR. NICHOLAS ALLEN KC (Sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) ____________________

Ms. Joy Brereton KC and Mr. Adam Wolanski KC (instructed by AFP Bloom LLP) for the Applicant Mr. Craig Vickers (instructed by Nelsons) for the Respondent Mr. Jude Bunting KC represented the BBC (instructed by BBC Legal) and Ms. Lucia Osborne-Crowley (instructed on a Direct Access Basis) Hearing dates: 25th � 26th February 2025 ____________________

a) RC's ('F') application dated 9 th September 2024 to extend the Transparency Order ('TO') made by His Honour Judge Talbott on 14 th November 2023, and which would otherwise expire at the end of these proceedings, until 14 th May 2037 in order to preserve the anonymity of the parties' child in reports of these proceedings until their 18 th birthday; and

b) applications by the BBC and journalist Ms. Lucia Osborne-Crowley dated 25 th September 2024 to disapply the Administration of Justice Act 1960 ('AJA 1960') s12 so as to be able to report the identities of the parties, the parties' child, any other professional whom they consider to be relevant, and also report the contents of all documents in the proceedings. The two applications seek an order in the same terms and so I shall refer to both collectively as "the media's application" .

What is unlikely to be agreed is the characterisation of the behaviour - perhaps best illustrated by Dr. Proudman's para. 9 in her position statement where she says: "The mother seeks directions for a finding of fact hearing to prove her allegations of reproductive coercion, controlling behaviour including pathological lying, gaslighting, manipulative deception, all of which amounts to abusive behaviour pursuant to s.1 of the Domestic Abuse Act, and accordingly would have caused [C] harm."